Drawbacks of Retiring in Mississippi

If your dream for retirement is slowing down in the sunny South, there are plenty of reasons to do so in Mississippi. However, there are drawbacks that might give some potential retirees second thoughts about the Magnolia State. Here is a look at some of them.

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Below-average Education System  - MarketWatch lists the education system as a drawback to retiring in Mississippi. The link between school systems and retirement is generally intangible. A look at local coverage of just about any school tax issue brings out opinions from seniors who don't want to pay any more school taxes and equally vociferous commentary from those who say good schools lead to good quality of other aspects of local life, such as a connection between local education and local cultural life. "A lot of the smaller towns in the state are isolated rural outposts with little to recommend them," MarketWatch notes.
Local Health  - Mississippi has the highest obesity and poverty rates in the country, according to MarketWatch. However, a 2012 story in the Natchez Democrat challenges the relevance of that claim with a transplant retiree who runs the Natchez Retiree Partnership, saying a Bankrate study of health and similar criteria in 2012 was geared toward Mississippians retiring at home, not people moving to Mississippi to retire. Nonetheless, a 2014 Bankrate study noted Mississippi health care, or the lack of access to such, poses a problem for those of retirement age, according to the Clarion-Ledger newspaper of Jackson, the state capital.

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Hot Summers  - The same Southern climate and proximity to the Gulf of Mexico that makes winters mild makes summers swelteringly hot and "mosquito-filled," MarketWatch notes. In addition to the toll the heat takes on an older body, mosquitoes bring their own set of health problems.
Homeowner's Insurance  - Although the cost of home ownership is lower than average in Mississippi, that can change near the Gulf Coast, where the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina left homeowners in that part of the state facing sudden jumps in homeowner insurance rates, according to financial planner John Bergland Jr. of Ridgeland as quoted by MarketWatch.
Other Factors  - Bankrate's latest survey of potential retirement places put the Magnolia State at 36th among states in which to retire, saying its latest survey included interviews with retirees and potential retirees, and was designed for the use of seniors who planned to move when they retired. It assigned more weight to factors the retirees themselves said were relevant to them. Bankrate's 2015 survey ranked Mississippi first (best) in cost of living, 23rd in crime rate, 44th in community well-being, 47th in health care quality, 11th in tax rate, and 42nd in weather. One factor that might have driven Mississippi's rank down was that Bankrate would lower a place's rating if it was tourist oriented, assuming seniors would prefer to stay away from the crowds and high prices of a tourist area.